Jackie's Journey "Life's Relentless Shifting!"

From the look of my neighbor’s yards, my front doors, our Malls and craft stores, the holiday season is in full swing!  Fall is one of my favorite times of year and this one is going to be distinctive with a lot of changes and variables.  We live in a world in which the only constant factor is change…

 “Have you ever thought about change and the collapse of time?  From the days of the Lord Jesus Christ until about 1830, man could not travel any faster than a horse.  In 1960 a man went into outer space and traveled at a speed of 18,000 miles per hour.  Look how far we have come in so short a time(and even more so, the changing world to date)!  Sometimes when I read the papers (or open social media), I think we are trying to run the Space Age (or this day and age)with horse-and-buggy moral and spiritual equipment.

 Technology, you see, has no morals, and with no moral compass man will destroy himself ecologically, militarily, spiritually, or in some other way.  Only God can give a person moral restraints and spiritual strength.  While our world is shaking and crumbling, we need to realize one thing will never change… and that is God. He is the same today as He was ten million years ago, and He will be the same ten million years from today.  We are like grasshoppers; we appear and hop around a bit on earth and then we are gone.” Billy Graham

 The truth is…when we are through changing, we are through!  Bernard Baruch said  “During my eighty-seven years, I have witnessed a whole succession of technological revolutions.  But none of them has done away with the need for character in the individual or ability to think”.   SOOO, this holiday season, I choose to embrace change and welcome new adventures…new ways of doing things…but mostly, I choose a new appreciation of my God who never changes…

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "THANK YOU, MOM!"

We are sitting at lunch when my daughter casually mentions that she and her husband are thinking of “starting a family”.  “We are taking a survey” she said, half-joking.  “Do you think I should have a baby?”

 “It will change your life, “I say carefully, keeping my tone neutral.  “I know”, she said, “no more sleeping in on week-ends, no more spontaneous vacations…”  But that is not what I meant at all.  I look at my daughter, trying to decide where to begin to tell her…

 I want to tell her that the physical wounds of child-bearing will heal, but that becoming a mother will leave her with an emotional wound so raw that she will forever be vulnerable.   I consider warning her that she will never again hear a newscast without asking, “What if that had been MY child?”  That every plane crash, every house fire will haunt her.  That when she sees pictures of starving children, she will wonder if anything could be worse than watching your child die!

 I look at her carefully manicured nails and stylish hair and clothes and think that no matter how sophisticated she is, becoming a mother will reduce her to the primitive level of a mama bear protecting her cub!  That an urgent call of “MOM!” will cause her to drop a souffle or her best crystal without a moment’s hesitation or thought.

 I want my daughter to know that everyday decisions will no longer be routine.  That little 5-year-old prince’s desire to go to the men’s room rather than the women’s at McDonald’s will become a major dilemma. That right there, in the midst of clattering trays and screaming children, issues of independence and gender identity will be weighed against the prospect that a child molester may be lurking in that restroom!

 Regardless of how decisive my daughter has been up to this point, she will second-guess herself constantly, as a mother.  Looking at my beautiful daughter, I want to assure her that eventually she will shed the pounds of pregnancy, but she will never feel the same about herself.  That her life, now so important, will be of less value to her once she has a child. That she would give it up in a moment to save her offspring, but  will also begin to hope for more years…not to accomplish her own dreams, but to watch her prince or princess accomplish theirs.  I want her to know that a cesarean scar or shiny stretch marks will become badges of honor.

 My daughter’s relationship with her husband will change, but not the way she thinks.  I wish she could understand how much more you can love a man who is careful to powder the baby or who never hesitates to play with his child.  I think she should know that she will fall in love with him again for reasons she would now find very unromantic.

 I wish my daughter could sense the bond she will feel with women throughout history who have tried to stop war, prejudice, drugs and drunk-driving.  I hope she will understand why I can think rationally about most issues, but become temporarily insane when I discuss the threat of nuclear war to my children’s future.  I want to describe to my daughter the exhilaration of seeing your child learn to read or ride a bike.  I want to capture for her the belly laugh of a baby touching the soft fur of a dog or a cat for the first time.  I want her to taste the joy that is so real, it actually hurts!

 My daughter’s quizzical look makes me realize that tears have formed in my eyes.  “You’ll never regret it,” I finally say.  Then I reach across the table, squeeze my daughter’s hand and offer a prayer for her and for me and for all the mortal women who stumble their way into the most wonderful of callings…this blessed gift from God…

 that of being a Mother.

 “Whoever welcomes a little child in my name, welcomes Me; and whoever welcomes Me, welcomes the one who sent Me.  For he who is the least among you all…he is the greatest.” Luke 9: 48

 (Years ago, my sister sent this anonymous article to me…

Thank you, Diana)

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "Promises and Possibilities!"

Moms, have you thought about the culture our young children are growing into? Our faith is marginalized, immorality is expected and acceptable, socialism is fashionable, life is under attack, our Christian values and religious freedoms are deemed outdated and offensive.

 Time cannot be expanded, accumulated, mortgaged, hastened, or retarded.  It just keeps on…”

I usually begin my introspection regarding ‘time ‘after Christmas when facing the New Year! However, I can’t stop thinking about my seven grandchildren and how quickly time has passed from the day in the hospital when each one was placed in my arms until today when I look up (they are all way taller than I am!) and realize how adult they all are!

 They were tiny little ones not too long ago, just a blink, wrapped in a promise and a possibility not yet realized.  Time has flown and every call or contact is a special blessing, as they each find their own voice of influence.  They are the declaration for the next generation. 

 They are our future.

 I am currently the grandmother of 4 University students.  Each one has been sent as a missionary to colleges around the country.  They are courageous and are standing alone for what they believe!  Our oldest granddaughter is a graduate of USC, our second granddaughter, Alexandra, is a graduate of Biola and currently getting her MBA from Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, attending with her husband, Jackson, who is also a Liberty student.  My grandson Payton, has one semester left at Liberty to graduate and his year-younger brother, Christopher, is my fourth student at Liberty and will graduate a year and a half from now.

 They are gone …in a blink! 

Alexandra, Christopher, Catherine and Payton

I never dreamed that years ago in the jungles of Panama that I would have the opportunity and blessing to have lived locally with all 7 of my grandchildren. Our hearts desire was to serve the Kuna Tribe in the Darien until…forever!  God had a different plan for us and our time here in the states became planting Spanish-speaking churches and discipling leadership to move on to a different location and start another church.  We have seen God establish seven churches (in Panama, Mexico, and in Southern California).  This has enabled us to be near our girls and their growing families.

 The challenge, now, is to not drop the ball at this stage!

 Where are you in the growth of your family?

 Are they being prepared to face the culture

that is clamoring for their souls?

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey ""Don't Panic!"

If you have been following me or know me, you are aware of the “fear factor” that revealed itself, as I became more and more transparent in the early days of living in the jungle. Fear of death by arrow or fear of huge scorpions, snakes or spiders is not where we are going with this blog. But the fear issue of being creatures with natural fears is the springboard for where we are going. Why do we have a “fear response” at all?

 Reflecting glory back to God with my fear has been a profitable exercise of faith in understanding the purpose of it to begin with.  Why is fear so prevalent and practiced?  Why is it misused and abused?  When you look at what we face in our families, churches, communities, nationally and globally, you get a clearer picture of how we have been deceived.

 The directive has always been to fear one thing only.  That would certainly simplify the “fear” issue, wouldn’t it?  We are told to “Fear God”!   Fear the consequence of sin.   Why do I need to fear God? Isn’t His very character loving and protective? Why would I fear God?

 There is a very good reason this should be a top contender of consideration.  We are told that the “fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.” Pro. 1: 7 I gain knowledge of biblical truth by “fearing the Lord!”

 Let’s let the Bible define what it means “to fear the Lord”.  “It is to hate evil, pride, and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.” Prov. 8: 13 The greatest visible evidence of our fearing God is simple obedience to what He says in His Word.

 Ladies, this means no “acceptable sins” are permitted:

·      No Deception

·      No Covetousness

·      No Fearfulness

·      No Loneliness

·      No Stinginess

·      No Dominance

·      No Double-mindedness

·      No Disrespect

·      No Slothfulness

·      No Presumption

·      No Apathy

·      No Hypocrisy

·      No Extravagance

·      No Wastefulness

·      No Anger

·      No Rudeness

·      No Irresponsibility

·      ETC….ETC…

 Where do you find yourself?  Accepting His sovereignty? Fearing God by obeying Him brings blessing and peace.  Focusing on God’s purpose for fear frees us to be useful, instead of paralyzed. It motivates us to see what God has in whatever circumstance we find ourselves in and it empowers us to see from His frame of reference and get in harmony with Him and what He is doing. To fear God is to fear sin. To fear sin is to fear God.

 Do you “fear the Lord” and the consequence of your sin?

 This is the “fear” we need to heed…

NOT the fear of future, failure and futility!!

It’s a faith issue…obedience is the fruit of faith…

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "She's Gone!"

There is a grand exodus taking place today!  The moving van arrives at 9:30 and my life is being altered forever!  My eldest daughter, Christina is moving to North Carolina!  It happened sooo fast!  I am making the adjustment with great difficulty, because we have lived either together or within a few miles of each other for over 50 years.  I have been so blessed and am excited for her new adventure.

 As we went through the exercise of emptying her house with its years of memories and “treasures”, I became acutely aware of what has value and what does not. She has value, things do not!  Life will definitely be different for those of us left behind…her imprint on each of us has been profound.

Philip and Christina 2023

When the girls were small and we were living in the jungles of Panama, I knew one day they would marry and move away from us.  At that time, our young missionary commitment was to “burn out” on the mission field and the foreseeable adjustment was an inevitable supposition. However, God had another plan and has allowed us to be together as family and best friends for half a century!

 Times are changing…separations are inevitable…daily we are hearing of both young and older people just dropping dead! Families are being separated by death and divorce. Children with blood clots and hemorrhages.  Very few of us escape knowing someone in these days that has not left this earth, many abruptly.    I have a class reunion coming up and the list of those who are gone and will not be joining us is long. 

 Every one of us faces physical death.  There is no way of “dodging that bullet”. Godly obedience comes with the promise of long life…but death is inevitable and we are all dying a little each day!

 What we do with the time we have, short as it is, tells us what we value most and where are “treasure” is. When our treasure is eternal, not temporal…we receive the promise of never dying but passing from one life to another…an eternal life.

 In a society where monetary treasures are on the cusp of being devalued to nil, the temporal world is feeling pretty insecure.  If we define our “treasure” by worldly standards we are in deep trouble!

 “Treasures” are the trusts that God gives us until He calls us home. “By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures.” Pr. 24: 4 

 Wisdom is seeing life’s situations from God’s point of view and acting in harmony with Him.

Understanding is application of wisdom and

Knowledge is familiarity gained by insight to (biblical) truth, experience and accumulated facts and reports.”

 As women, are we wise, understanding and “full of knowledge”?

Are our rooms filled with rare and beautiful eternal treasures?

 The realm of tribulation becomes the home of revelation and the resource of knowledge.  “Whoever loves disciple loves knowledge.” Pro. 12: 1   The test!  Do I love discipline?  Discipline is accepting suffering as God’s fastest path to growth and then, giving thanks for it! (My husband’s definition and I’ve had a multitude of opportunities to see it proven!)

 We had better love it, accept it, practice it, and endorse it because scripture states, “He who hates correction is stupid!”  I already fight stupid!  So, for me, it is imperative that I get wisdom, understanding and knowledge, because I want the fruit…” rooms filled with rare and beautiful eternal treasures.”

 How about you?

 My Treasures

People often say that the biggest treasures in life are the people that surround us.  Spurgeon puts this in perspective when he said, “We must keep all earthly treasures out of our heart and let Christ be our treasure, and let him have our heart.”  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.  Like 12:34

 Who has your heart?

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "Oh no...!"

http://www.vimOeo.com/16404771 

If you have not heard the story of Jonah told by the daughter of Lindsey Douglas you are in for a treat!  Listen to the heart of a precious child who will make this Blog very understandable…

“It was not the sin and corruption of the Ninevites, although those were great.  It was not the graft-ridden police force or corrupt politicians.  It was not the false cults and religions.   The biggest obstacle to the salvation of Nineveh was found in the heart of a pious, prejudiced man named Jonah!  There was no deceitfulness in all of Nineveh like the deceitfulness in Jonah’s heart.  Jonah was the key to the salvation of Nineveh.  God’s people are the key to the spiritual climate of our nation and the world.” George Sweeting

                                                                                       Deceitfulness comes from a secret lust.

It is the result of a long sin pattern.  Jonah was foolish enough

to argue with God! He thought he could run away from God…

 Do you ever feel that way?

 Jonah deceived himself!  His prejudice against a people he was called to preach repentance caused his own downfall. Sound familiar?  His job was to take the message of God to Nineveh, the capital of Assyria.  The Assyrians were old enemies of Israel and he was not fond of these people and did not want salvation for an enemy, among other things.  So, he decided to run from God…

 We are called to stand in the gap for those lost and in need.  Have you ever felt the call of God to do something that was inconvenient or outside your “wheelhouse”?  Did you rationalize your situation and argue with God or did you instantly obey?

 Rationalizing the clear “prompting voice” away is difficult the first time, but gets easier as we pass the responsibility onto another person or time causes the prompting voice to almost disappear.  Rationalization is nothing more than allowing my mind to find reasons to excuse what my spirit already knows is wrong.  Romans 2: 21

 As a people, we are in dire need of accepting responsibility, stepping up to the plate, letting our voice be heard and recognizing the fact that we are the key to change in the spiritual climate of our homes, communities and nation. 

 Jonah was disobedient to his calling and he reaped the consequence.

  His willfulness not only caused problems for him, but others…sin has a way of doing that!

 We only deceive ourselves by believing the lies that come with rationalizing our sin:

I will do it later…

I am too busy right now…

I will only eat one bite…

I can stop any time I want…

I exercised poor judgement…

I can do it myself and I can do it my way…

I made a mistake…

It was poor communication…

I couldn’t help it…

Nobody’s perfect…

I just can’t help myself…

It wasn’t that bad…

I am a victim of my circumstances or I take full responsibility

 What excuse do you use most frequently?

 An intelligent person can rationalize anything, a wise person doesn’t try!

Jen Knox

 Obedience is following God-given instructions under the protection of God-given authority so the one being served will be fully satisfied.  Like Jonah, God gives each of us a choice multiple time…daily!  II Cor. 10: 15

 Jonah missed the blessing by disobeying God.  He repented but his sin still carried a consequence.

How do you reply when God speaks to you?

Do you instantly respond to the initial promptings of His Spirit

or do you argue with God…rationalizing?

When you rationalize, you do just that.  You make “rational lies”!

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "Age is Just a Number"

Age is just a number, until its NOT!  I have currently lived 29,200 days; 4,160 weeks and 960 months! Probably 20 years of that was sleeping; 30 years of work; 17 years of screens/pixels; 3 years getting ready in the morning; 2 years doing laundry and 79 days of brushing my teeth!  With eternity in full view, the brevity of life glaring me in the face (and everywhere else), time needs to be treasured and there is no stopping the clock…

 I ask myself, “Is what I am doing worth dying for?”

 If not, it is not worth living for?

 We are called to live a “supernatural life”.  We do NOT have the power in ourselves to live it!  We need divine power.  That gift of power is given when we exchange it in unconditional surrender. My life purpose is not seeking a ministry but anticipating the fruit of a disciplined life.  In my early Christian life, I was introduced to the “terms of discipleship” and it changed everything.  A mortal (body) life will end, but an eternal life lives forever.

 We are to be stewards of the mysteries of God and each “man’s work will become evident and each will receive his own reward according to his own labor”. (I Cor. 3: 5-16) What opportunities has God recently given me to serve Him?  What earthly things take the majority of my mental energy in this season of life? Keeping eternity in view and our responsibility for an obedient life makes us wise and ready…

 Where do you see yourself in the scheme of age and mortality?

The edge of eternity is closer than you think…

“…For what is your life, it is a vapor, that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.”

 Is what I am giving my time and attention to, given with eternity in full view?  Are my priorities temporal or eternal-focused?  Sacrificing the permanent on the altar of the immediate will end in a futile life span. 

 Being wise with HIS time and numbering our days, will give us a future and hope…

both now and in the time to come…

Let’s make this New Year 2023 the best one yet!

Ralph and I…New Years Eve 2022

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "Keeping Current!"

When the concept for “The Princess Parable Series” came about, our purpose was to put in the hands of young moms, grand-moms, aunties, etc. a series of books that would introduce a little teachable princess, a biblical parable and a character quality that a child could identify with and aspire to become.  At the end of each book the “life-lesson” from the parable was expressed in the words of the Princess.  Each book became a teaching tool for moms.

 Keeping current with what is happening with what are children are being taught and what they are given to read is becoming increasingly difficult because of the speed with which we are being bombarded with information.  The fact and reality that we cannot keep up with what is being legislated, whether by state or federal governments, should set off every alarm system we have!  WE are commissioned to nurture and protect those given to us… and I fear for my grandchildren!

 Will good books with biblical truth become obsolete?  Will materials that carry our values, be available to us in the future? Our children are counting on us to deliver principles and values that are in harmony with biblical veracity. It is past time to step up to the plate and take a stand against the tsunami of disinformation being doled out in our local schools.  Our counter-teaching against all that is being thrown at us is more imperative than it has ever been!

 When you take God out of government, schools, communities…you have no truth, other than relative truth, which is that we each become our own God with our own truth!  What can we expect for the upcoming generations that are the future of His message and our society?   Cultural acceptance of ungodly teaching and behavior is destroying us, as a people and as a nation…

 We can rationalize and say it has gone too far and we have no hope of turning back the tide or we can stand with those who are in the fight to preserve our heritage.  Will you be one of those?

 There are multiple platforms that support biblical truth. 

Can I encourage you to be aware and be informed?

Jackie's Journey "The Princess Star!"

With the new telescope that far surpasses what we have seen in space before, Solar and star gazing has become an official pursuit.  Follow the perspective of a very bright little princess…

 There is a story of a little princess who anxiously waited for the day of the Christmas pageant.  She was so excited about her part that her parents thought she must be one of the main characters, though she had not told them what part she would play. 

 The day finally arrived and her parents enthusiastically entered the auditorium and watched as each of the children was called to take their place.  The shepherds nervously waited in the corner of the stage holding two sheep.  Mary and Joseph were placed near the manger.  In the back were the three Wise Men eagerly waiting with a small camel.  Each and every child was placed in position…except for the little princess.  She contentedly sat quietly.

 The music started and the director began the narrative.  “A long time ago, Joseph and Mary went up from Galilee to be taxed. It was there that Mary and Joseph had a baby and they named Him Jesus,” the narrator began.   “And when Jesus was born a bright star appeared over the stable.  That was her cue!  She quickly jumped up from her chair, picked up a large, sparkling star and walked behind the manger, holding the star up high for everyone to see.  It flickered in the lights and all eyes were drawn to baby Jesus in the manger.

 The story continues and finds the shepherds in the field with their sheep.  That was her cue…the little princess moved into position on stage, wiggling the shiny star to show the shepherds where to arrive at the manger.  When the director mentioned the Wise Men…the little princess quickly moved to meet them and lead the way to the Christ child.  Her face was beaming as bright as the star she was carrying!

 The play ended with a round of applause and a standing ovation.  In the car on the way home, the little princess was happily chattering, “I had the main part, did you see?”   “You did?” her mother questioned.  “Yes” she said enthusiastically,

 “I showed everybody how to find Jesus!”

 This could not have been truer!  Showing others how to find Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world and to be the light that would draw them to Him has got to be the finest role we can play in life!

 May the Light of the Christ Child be your focus

this Christmas Season and throughout the New Year…

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Jackie's Journey "Woman-Power!"

We have all heard and probably repeated the old adage which is the biblical proverb, “Where there is no vision, the people languish and perish”.  (Pro. 29: 18) I have been focused on the vision God has for my life since I was in college.  It wasn’t until I got to II Peter in the New Testament that I understood God has a designed vision for me that He makes available to any those of us who desire to be a godly woman, wife, mom, grandma, powerful in her influence, firm in her faith. 

 “He has given us everything we need to live a godly life…”

(So, there are no excuses for patterns of failure!)

 There are two powers in relationships given by God that dominate the world.  The first is the power of authority.  It’s not a choice, its positional.  The second is the power of influence, which is a choice.

 Which one is the greater or more powerful?

 The power of influence is the greater power because it is a choice and it chooses to have power over another person. Our family, friends and every other relationship is affected…either inspired or manipulated by our use of influence. We learn to appeal to persuade our children and others to make right choices. (Esther is a good example!) We’ve all heard of “woman-power”.  Have you ever thought about it?  The man was given the power of authority and the women the power of influence. (Gen. 16:3)

 What determines our influence?

How is our power manifested?

 For good or evil, we woman are influencing ALL THE TIME.  We are a letter and “we are known and read of all men”. (II Cor. 3: 2) Others are always watching to see the REAL us through our responses to life’s situations and our attitudes which result in actions. “The serene silent beauty of a holy life is the most powerful influence in the world, next to the might of God”. (Blaise Pascal) Holiness vanishes when you talk about it but becomes gloriously conspicuous when you live it!

 A good example (instead of a bad excuse!) is the most inspirational influence.

 What’s your vision for your family?

How are you using your power of influence

to see that vision fulfilled?

 As a basic principle, what we do in moderation our children will do in excess.

Let’s commit to using our power of influence for a life of godly influence,

 that others might speak well of Him because of us!

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is mentoring and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights.